Chet Holmgren has only logged three appearances this preseason, but the early results have shown the former second pick will have a great chance to flourish with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Holmgren continued a strong exhibition run on Tuesday, producing 18 points, three rebounds, three assists and one blocked shot in a 124-101 win over the Milwaukee Bucks. He was efficient from the field, missing only one of his eight shot attempts, in 26 minutes.
The 7-footer knocked down two 3-pointers on wide-open looks. On each attempt, Holmgren started the possession in the paint. He then waited for the plays to develop by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Josh Giddey before leaking out to the corner.
It made for some rather easy offense for Holmgren and the Thunder.
“It is great to be able to go out there and get good shots without having to work extremely hard for them,” Holmgren said. “We got great players on this team. They’re really selfless and are willing to work hard and draw the double team and help find guys on the perimeter, which is big. It makes shots easy for me, as well as other shooters.”
SO…this Chet guy is pretty good.@okcthunder | #ThunderUp pic.twitter.com/624xGxVuAo
— Bally Sports Oklahoma (@BallySportsOK) October 18, 2023
The Thunder, as a team, are clicking on offense. They are third in the NBA with 116.3 points per 100 possessions this preseason. They dished 34 assists versus the Bucks, their second game with at least 30 assists, and they are sixth in that category with 28.8 per game.
Holmgren is averaging 18.3 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.7 blocks and 1.3 assists on 55.6% shooting from 3-point range. He has led the Thunder in scoring during his three appearances and has taken advantage of playing next to a talented group of playmakers.
“We’re really hitting a good stride and figuring things out,” Holmgren said. “It is early and we’re going to have mistakes and we’re going to work to fix things, but I feel like we’re in a really good spot. We’re starting to click and mesh with each other. Coach (Mark Daigneault) talks about having good efficiency and the more efficient you play as a team, the bigger the pie is for everybody.”
Nice OKC possession results in a Chet Holmgren corner three pic.twitter.com/iKETyR0N6u
— Brett Usher (@UsherNBA) October 18, 2023
Holmgren has also looked good on the defensive end of the court.
He was credited with blocking a shot by Damian Lillard after switching onto the seven-time All-Star in the first quarter. The play offered a glimpse of his pick-and-roll defense this year, which impressed Daigneault.
He had a good game plan execution tonight. He is going to be in a billion pick-and-rolls defensively, and they’re kind of nuanced based on who the defensive guard is, who the offensive guard is, who the screener is, where the screen is set and what the game plan is. Tonight, he moved himself up a little bit with Lillard. He was back a little further with other guys. I thought he showed good intellect on that end of the floor, which is going to be important.
Holmgren has impressed early and is showing what the team missed last year after sitting with a foot injury. The results may have come in the preseason, but Holmgren is showing his value and should be in store for a strong rookie campaign.
The Thunder wrap up the preseason on Friday versus Detroit in Tulsa.
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